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23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

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CIHM/ICMH 

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10X  14X  18X  22X 


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y 


12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


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empreinte. 


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dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
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method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  dtre 
film6s  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diffdrents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
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de  Tangle  sup6rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  ndcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mdthode. 


1  2  3 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

ABC 


A   CI 


ADDRESS 

ON   THE 

PRESENT    CONDITION 

AND 

PROSPECTS 

OF    THE 

I 

ABORIGINAL    INHABITANTS 

OF  NORTH  AMERICA, 
WITH  PARTICULAR  REFERENCE 


TO   THE 


SENECA    NATION. 


DELIVERED  AT  BUFFALO,  NEW  YORK. 
BY   M,  B.  PIERCE, 

A   CHIEF    OF   THE    SENECA   NATION,  AND   A  MEMBER   OF 
DARTMOUTH   COLLEGE. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

J.  Richards,  Printer,  No.  130  North  Third  Street. 

1839. 


PREFACE. 


The  following  Address,  recently  delivered,  has  been 
published  under  the  hope  that  the  subject  of  the  wrongs 
done  to  the  Indian  tribes  of  our  country  by  designing 
men,  may  claim  more  of  the  public  attention.  Surround- 
ed as  the  Seneca  Indians  are  with  the  conveniences  of 
civilized  life,  they  now  are  beginning  to  appreciate  the 
eflbrts  heretofore  made  by  benevolent  individuals  and  as- 
sociations for  their  benefit.  In  order  to  enable  these  In- 
dians to  retain  their  lands,  and  encourage  them  to  with- 
stand the  combined  efforts  of  unprincipled  men,  who  are 
endeavouring  to  wrest  by  fraud  their  property  from  them, 
it  is  hoped  the  citizens  of  our  common  country  will  join 
in  petitioning  the  Senate  not  to  ratify  the  Treaty  which 
the  agents  of  both  the  Land  Company  and  others,  have 
been  endeavouring  to  make  with  a  part  of  the  Chiefs, 
during  the  past  year,  should  they  succeed  in  obtaining  it. 

In  proof  of  the  kind  of  fraud  resorted  to,  the  reader  is 
referred  to  the  case  of  Jolm  Snow's  Contract.*  In  order 
to  obtain  his  signature  and  influence,  not  only  is  a  large 
sum  of  money  to  be  paid  liim,  but  it  is  also  guaranteed 
that  he  shall  continue  to  possess  his  land,  and  shall  not 
be  compelled  to  remove.  Thus,  those  who  are  openly 
and  honestly  contending  for  their  rights,  and  entreating 
for  the  unmolested  possession  of  their  homes,  are  by  the 
treachery  of  others,  to  be  forced  to  relinquish  them, 
whilst  those  who  have  thus  betrayed  them,  are  to  remain 
in  the  enjoyment  of  their  lands,  and  in  addition,  to  receive 
a  large  sum  of  money  as  the  price  of  their  treachery;  and 
this  bribe  ifj  offered  ostensibly  for  the  Indian's  good,  by 
those  professing  to  be  christians.  "Therefore  all  things 
whatsoever  ye  would  that  men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye 
even  so  to  them." 

Philadelphia,  Isi  mo.  1839. 

*  See  Appendix — page  19. 


9} 


ADDRESS. 


*t 


The  condition  and  circumstances  of  the  race  of  people 
of  whom  I  am  by  blood  owe,  and  in  the  well  being  of 
whom  I  am,  by  the  ties  of  kindred  and  the  common  feel- 
ings of  humanity,  deeply  interested,  sufficiently  apolo- 
gize, and  tell  the  reason  for  my  seeking  this  occasion  of 
appearing  before  this  audience,  in  this  city.  Not  only 
the  eyes  and  attention  of  yow,  our  neighbors— but  also 
of  the  councils  of  this  great  nation,  are  turned  upon  us. 
We  are  expected  to  do,  or  to  refuse  to  do,  what  the 
councils  of  this  nation,  and  many  private  men,  are  now 
asking  of  us — what  many  favour  and  advocate — yet  also 
what  many  discountenance  and  condemn. 

My  relation  to  ray  kindred  people  being  as  you  are 
aware  it  is,  I  have  thought  it  not  improper — rather  that 
it  was  highly  jorojoer—- that  1  should  appear  before  you 
in  my  own  person  and  character,  in  behalf  of  my  people 
and  myself,  to  present  some  facts,  and  views,  and  rea- 
sons, which  must  necessarily  have  a  material  bearing 
upon  our  decisions  and  doings  at  the  present  juncture  of 
our  affairs. 

Hitherto  our  cause  has  been  advocated  almost  exclu- 
sively, though  ably  and  humanely,  by  the  friends  of  hu- 
man right  and  human  weal,  belonging  by  nature  to  a 
different,  and  by  circumstances  and  education^  to  a 
superior  race  of  men.  The  ability  and  humanity  of  its 
advocates,  however,  does  not  do  away  the  expediency. 


nor  even  the  necessity ^  of  those  of  us  who  can,  standing 
forth  with  our  own  pen  and  voices,  in  behalf  of  that 
same  right  and  that  same  weal  as  connected  with  our- 
selves, which  have  been  and  now  are,  by  a  powerful  and 
perhaps /afa/  agency,  almost  fatally  jeopardized. 

It  has  been  said  and  reiterated  so  frequently  as  to  have 
obtained  the  familiarity  of  household  words,  that  it  is 
the  doom  of  the  Indian  to  disappear — to  vanish  like  the 
morning  dew,  before  the  advance  of  civilization :  and 
melancholy  is  it  to  us — those  doomed  ones — that  the 
history  of  this  country,  in  respect  to  us  and  its  civiliza- 
tion, has  furnished  so  much  ground  for  the  saying,  and 
for  giving  credence  to  it. 

But  whence  and  why  are  we  thus  doomed  ?  Why 
must  we  be  crushed  hy  the  arm  of  civilization,  or  the 
requiom  of  our  race  be  chaunted  by  the  waves  of  the 
Pacific,  which  is  destined  to  engulph  us  ? 

It  has  been  so  long  and  so  often  said  as  to  have  gained 
general  credence,  that  our  natural  constitution  is  such 
as  to  render  us  incapable  of  apprehending,  and  incom- 
petent to  practice,  upon  those  principles  from  which  re- 
sult the  characteristic  qualities  of  christian  civilization ; 
and  so  by  a  necessary  consequence,  under  the  sanction 
of  acknowledged  principles  of  moral  law,  we  must  yield 
ourselves  sacrifices,  doomed  by  the  constitution  which 
the  Almighty  has  made  for  us,  to  that  other  race  of  hu- 
man beings,  whom  the  same  Almighty  has  endowed 
with  a  more  noble  and  more  worthy  constitution. 

These  are  the  premises ;  these  the  arguments ;  these 
the  conclusions ;  and  if  they  are  true,  and  just,  and  /c- 
gitimate,  ir  the  language  of  the  poet,  we  must  say, 

•'God  of  the  just — thou  gavest  the  bitter  cup, 
We  bow  to  thy  behest,  and  drink  it  up," 


4'H 


4,'i 


But  are  they  true^  and  justj  and  legitimate  ?  Do  we, 
as  a  people,  lack  the  capacity  of  apprehending  and  ap- 
preciating any  of  the  principles  which  form  the  basis  of 
christian  civilization?  Do  we  lack  the  competency  of 
practicing  upon  those  principles  in  any  or  all  their  va- 
rieties of  application  ? 

A  general  reference  to  facts  as  they  are  recorded  in 
the  history  of  the  former  days  of  our  existence,  and  as 
they  now  are  transpiring  before  the  eyes  of  the  whole 
enlightened  world,  give  an  answer  which  should  ever 
stifle  the  question,  and  redeem  us  from  the  stigma. 

Before  citing  particular  exemplifiations  of  the  truth  of 
this,  I  will  allude  to  one  question  which  is  triumphantly 
asked  by  those  who  adojjt  the  doctrine  of  the  untameable 
nature  of  the  Indian,  viz.  "  Why  have  not  the  Indians  be- 
come civilized  and  christianized  as  a  consequence  of 
their  intercourse  with  the  whites — and  of  the  exertions 
of  the  whites  to  bring  about  so  desirable  a  result?"  Who 
that  believes  the  susceptibilities  and  passions  of  human 
nature  to  be  in  the  main  uniform  throughout  the  rational 
species,  needs  an  answer  to  this  question  from  me  ? 

Recur  to  the  page  which  records  the  dealings,  both  in 
manner  and  substance,  of  the  early  white  settlers  and  of 
their  successors,  down  even  to  the  present  day,  with  the 
unlettered  and  unwary  red  man,  and  then  recur  to  the 
susceptibilities  of  your  own  bosom,  and  the  question  is 
answered. 

Say,  ye  on  whom  the  sun  light  of  civilization  a:id 
Christianity  has  constantly  shone — into  whose  lap  For- 
tune has  poured  her  brimful  horn,  so  that  you  are  enjoy- 
ing the  highest  and  best  spiritual  and  temporal  blessings 
of  this  world, — say,  if  some  beings  from  fairy  land,  or 
some  distant  planet,  should  come  to  you  in  such  a  man- 
ner as  to  cause  you  to  deem  them  children  of  greater 

1* 


6 


light  and  superior  wisdom  to  yourselves,  and  you  should 
open  to  them  the  hospitality  of  your  dwellings  and  the 
fruits  of  your  labor^  and  they  should,  by  dint  of  their 
superior  wisdom.,  dazzle  and  amaze  you,  so  as  for  what 
to  them  were  toys  and  rattles^  they  should  gain  freer 
admission  and  fuller  welcome,  till  finally  they  should 
claim  the  right  to  your  possessions,  and  of  hunting  you, 
like  wild  beasts,  from  your  long  and  hitherto  undisputed 
domain,  how  ready  would  you  be  to  be  taught  of  them? 
How  cordially  would  you  open  your  minds  to  the  con- 
viction that  they  meant  not  to  deceive  yon  further  and  still 
more  fatally  in  their  proffers  of  pretended  kindness.  How 
much  of  the  kindliness  of  friendship  for  them,  and  of 
esteem  for  their  manners  and  customs  would  you  feel? 
Would  not '  the  milk  of  human  kindness'  in  your  breasts 
be  turned  to  the  gall  of  hatred  towards  them  ?  And  have 
not  we^  the  original  and  undisputed  possessors  of  this 
country,  been  treated  ivorse  than  you  would  be,  should 
my  supposed  case  be  transformed  to  reality? 

But  I  will  leave  the  consideration  of  this  point  for  thtr 
present,  by  saying,  what  I  believe  every  person  who 
hears  me  will  assent  to,  that  the  manner  in  which  the 
whites  have  habitually  dealt  with  the  Indians,  make  them 
wonder  that  their  hatred  has  not  burned  with  tenfold 
fury  against  them,  rather  than  that  they  have  not  laid 
aside  their  own  peculiar  notions  and  habits,  and  adopted 
those  of  their  civilized  neighbors. 

Having  said  thus  much  as  to  the  question,  *'  Why 
have  not  the  Indians  been  civilized  and  christianized  by 
the  intercourse  and  efforts  of  the  whites?"  I  would  now 
call  your  attention  to  a  brief  exempli ftcation  of  the  point 
I  was  remarking  upon  before  alluding  to  the  above-men- 
tioned question,  viz.  **  That  the  Indian  is  capable  of  ap- 
prehending and  appreciating,  and  is  competent  to  prac- 


^ 


V 


\ 


tice  on  those  principles  which  form  the  basis  of  christian 
civilization." 

I  do  not  know  that  it  has  ever  been  questioned,  and 
especially  by  those  who  have  had  the  best  opportunities 
to  learn  by  experience  and  observation,  that  the  Indian 
possesses  as  perfect  a  physical  constitution  as  the  whites, 
or  any  other  race  of  men,  especially  in  the  matter  of 
hardy  body,  swift  foot,  sharp  and  true  eye,  accompanied 
by  a  hand  that  scarcely  ever  drew  the  bow-string  amiss, 
or  raised  the  tomahawk  in  vain. 

1  believe  also,  that  it  is  not  denied  that  he  is  suscepti- 
ble of  hatred,  and  equally  of  friendship,— that  he  even 
can  love  and  pity,  and  feel  gratitude, — that  he  is  prone 
to  the  adoration  of  the  Great  Spirit, — that  he  possesses 
an  imagination,  by  which  he  pictures  fields  of  the  bless- 
ed in  a  purer  and  more  glorious  world  than  this, — that 
he  possesses  the  faculty  of  memory  and  judgment,  and 
such  a  combination  of  faculties  as  enable  him  to  invent 
and  imitate, — that  he  is  susceptible  of  ambition,  emula- 
tion, pride,  vanity, — that  he  is  sensitive  to  honor  and 
disgrace,  and  necessarily  has  the  elements  of  a  moral 
sense  or  conscience.  All  these  are  granted  as  entering 
into  his  native  spiritual  constitution. 

For  instances  of  those  natural  endowments,  which, 
by  cultivation,  give  to  the  children  of  civilization  their 
great  names  and  far-reaching  fame,  call  to  mind  Philip 
of  Mount  Hope,  whose  consummate  talents  and  skill 
made  him  the  white  man's  terror,  by  his  display  of  those 
talents  and  skill  for  the  white  man's  destruction. 

Call  to  mind  Tecumseh,  by  an  undeserved  association 
with  whose  name,  one  of  the  great  men  of  your  nation 
has  obtained  more  of  greatness  than  he  ever  merited, 
either  for  his  deeds  or  his  character.  Call  to  mind  Red 
Jacket,  formerly  your  neighbor,  with  some  of  you  a 


8 


I  I 


friend  and  a  familiar,  of  the  same  tribe  with  whom  I 
have  the  honor  to  be  a  humble  member:  to  have  been  a 
friend  and  familiar  with  whom  none  of  you  feel  it  a 
disgrace.  Call  to  mind  Osceola,  the  victim  of  the  white 
man's  treachery  and  cruelty,  whom  neither  his  enemy's 
cunning  or  arm  could  conquer  on  the  battle  field,  and 
who  at  last  was  consumed  "in  durance  vile,"  by  the 
corroding  of  his  own  spirit.  "  In  durance  vile,"  I  say — 
(blot  the  fact  from  the  records  of  thai  damning  base- 
nenSy — of  that  violation  of  all  law,  of  all  humanity, — 
which  that  page  of  your  nation's  history  which  contains 
i.  i  account  of  it,  must  ever  be  ; — blot  out  the  fact,  I  say, 
before  you  rise  up  to  call  an  Indian  treacherous  or  cruel.) 
Call  to  mind  these  and  a  thousand  others,  whom  I  have 
not  time  to  mention,  and  my  point  is  gained. 

Here,  then,  the  fundamental  elements  of  the  best  es- 
tate of  human  nature  are  admitted  as  existing  in  the 
natural  constitution  of  the  Indian.  The  question  now 
comes,  are  these  elements  susceptible  of  cultivation  and 
improvement,  so  as  to  entitle  their  possessors  to  the 
rank  which  civilization  and  Christianity  bestow  ? 

For  an  instance  of  active  pity, — of  dtep,  rational, 
active  pity,  and  the  attendant  intellectual  qualities,  I  ask 
you  to  call  to  mind  the  story-surpassing  romance  of 
Pocahontas — she  who  threw  herself  between  a  supposed 
inimical  stranger,  and  the  deadly  club  which  had  been 
raised  by  the  stern  edict  of  her  stern  father, — she  begged 
for  the  victim's  life, — she  obtained  his  deliverance  from 
the  jaws  of  death  by  appealing  to  the  affections  which 
existed  in  the  bosom  of  her  father,  savage  as  he  was, 
and  which  affections  overcame  the  fell  intent  which  had 
caused  him  to  pronounce  the  white  man's  do  3m.  From 
this  time  she  received  the  instruction,  imbibed  the  prin- 
ciples and  sentiments,  adopted  the  manners  and  customs 


) 


9 

of  the  whites ;  in  her  bosom  burned  purely  and  ration- 
ally the  flame  of  love,  in  accordance  with  the  prompt- 
ings of  which,  she  offered  herself  at  the  hymenial  altar, 
to  take  the  nuptial  ties  with  a  son  of  Christian  England. 
The  offspring  of  this  marriage  have  been,  wUh  priihy 
claimed  as  sons  and  citizens  of  the  noble  and  venerable 
State  of  Virginia. 

Ye   who   love    prayer,   hover   in   your    imagination 
around  the  cot  of  Bn)wn,  and  listen  to  tlie  strong  suppli- 
,  cations  as  they  arise  from  the  fervent  heart  of  Catharine, 
and  then  tell  me  whether 

"  The  poor  Indian  wliosc  untutor'd  mind 
Sees  God  in  clouds  and  hears  him  in  the  wind," 

is  not  capable,  by  cultivation,  of  rationally  cojnprehending 
the  true  God,  whose  pavillion,  though  it  be  the  clouds, 
still  giveth  grace  even  to  the  humble. 

But  perhaps  I  am  indulging  too  much  in  minuteness. 
Let  me  then  refer  to  one  more  instance  which  covers 
the  whole  ground  and  sets  the  point  under  consideration 
beyond  dispute.  The  ill-starred  Cherokees  stand  forth 
in  colors  of  living  light,  redeeming  the  Indian  character 
from  the  foul  aspersions  that  it  is  not  susceptible  of  civ- 
ilization and  christianization.  In  most  of  the  arts  which 
characterise  civilized  life,  this  nation  in  the  aggregate, 
have  made  rapid  and  long  advances.  The  arts  of  peace 
in  all  their  varieties,  on  which  depend  the  comforts  and 
enjoyments  of  the  enlightened,  have  been  practised  and 
the  results  enjoyed  by  them.  The  light  of  revelation 
has  beamed  in  upon  their  souls,  and  caused  them  to  ex- 
change the  blind  worship  of  the  Great  Spirit,  for  the 
rational  worship  and  service  of  the  God  of  the  Bible. — 
Schools  have  been  established.  An  alphabet  of  the  lan- 
guage invented  by  one  of  their  own  men;  instruction 


10 


Ml 


I  I 


iL 


sought  and  imparted ;  and  letters  cultivated  in  their  own 
as  well  as  the  English  language. 

Hence  many  individuals  have  advanced  even  to  the 
refinements  of  civilized  life,  both  in  respect  to  their  phy- 
sical and  intellectual  condition.  A  John  Ross  stands  be- 
fore the  American  people  in  a  character  both  of  intellect 
and  heart  which  many  of  the  white  men  in  high  places 
may  envy,  yet  nevrr  be  able  to  attain.  A  scholar,  a 
patriot,  an  honest  and  honourable  man ;  standing  up  be- 
fore the  "  powers  that  be,"  in  the  eyes  of  heaven  and 
men,  now  demanding,  now  supplicating  of  those  pow- 
ers a  regard  for  the  rights  of  humanity,  of  justice,  of 
law, — is  still  a  scholar,  a  patriot,  an  honest  and  honor- 
able man,  though  an  Indian  blood  coursing  in  his  veins, 
and  an  Indian  color  giving  hue  to  his  complexion,  dooms 
him  and  his  children  a:>d  kin  to  be  hunted  at  the  point 
of  the  bayonet  by  those  powers,  from  their  homes  and 
possessions  and  country,  to  the  "  terra  incognita"  be- 
yond the  Mississippi. 

I  now  leave  this  point,  on  which,  perhaps  I  need  not 
have  spoken  thus  briefly,  from  the  fact  that  it  is  granted 
by  all  of  you  as  soon  as  announced;  and  proceed  to 
make  a  few  remarks  confined  more  exclusively  to  my 
ov^n  kindred  tribe,  a  part  of  whom  live  near  this  city. 

Taking  it  as  clearly  true  that  the  Indians  are  suscep- 
tible of  cultivation  and  improvement,  even  to  the  degree 
of  physical,  intellectual  and  moral  refinement,  which 
confers  the  title  of  civilized  and  christianized, — I  now 
proceed  to  consider  whether  their  condition  and  feelings 
are  such  as  to  render  feasible  the  undertaking  to  bring 
them  up  to  that  degree^ — whether  in  fact  they  do  not 
themselves  desire  to  come  up  to  it.  When  I  say  Mey, 
I  mean  those  who  constitute  the  body  and  stamina  of 
the  people.     As  to  this  point,  I  take  it  upon  myself  to 


nr  own 


11 

say  that  such  an  undertaking  is  feasible,  and  doubly  so 
from  the  fact  that  the  object  of  the  undertaking  is  earn- 
estly desired  by  themselves. 

I  know  of  no  way  to  set  this  matter  in  a  clearer  light 
than  by  presenting  you  with  some  facts  as  to  the  spirit 
and  the  advance  of  improvements  amongst  them.  And 
this  I  crave  the  liberty  of  doing  by  a  brief  detail  of  items, 
prefacing  the  detail  by  the  remark  of  a  highly  respecta- 
ble individual,  formerly  of  Holland,  Erie  co.,  but  for 
some  eighteen  years  a  resident  of  Illinois,  After  an  ab- 
sence of  about  fifteen  years,  he  returned  two  or  three 
years  ago,  and  spent  the  summer  in  this  region,  and 
several  days  of  the  time  on  the  Reservation.  He  fre- 
quently remarked  that  the  Indians,  during  his  absence, 
had  improved  far  more  rapidly  than  their  neighbors  in 
the  country  around  them. 

In  business  there  is  much  greater  diligence  and  indus- 
try ;  their  teams,  in  respect  to  oxen,  horses,  wagons, 
sleighs,  &c.,  are  greater  in  number  and  better  in  quality 
than  formerly :  and  in  these  respects  there  is  a  constant 
improvement.  The  men  labor  more,  comparatively,  and 
the  women  less,  except  in  their  appropriate  sphere, 
than  formerly. 

With  regard  to  buildings,  they  are  much  more  con- 
veniently planned,  and  of  the  best  materials,  both  dwell- 
ing houses  and  barns,  and  new  ones  constantly  going 
up.  Those  who  have  not  lands  of  their  own  under  cul- 
tivation, are  much  more  willing  to  hire  out  their  services 
to  others,  either  by  the  year  or  by  shares.  This  shows 
that  the  idea,  '*  to  work  is  thought  to  be  dishonorable," 
has  been  done  away.  There  are  amongst  us,  good 
mowers,  and  cradlers,  and  reapers.  Blacksmiths,  car- 
penters, shoemakers,  and  other  mechanics,  find  work 
enough  from  their  own  brethren.     There  are  several 


12 


Mj 


wagons  in  the  nation,  which  are  worth  more  than  one 
hundred  dollars  in  cash ;  tools  of  the  best  quality  and  of 
various  kinds;  manure  and  other  things  are  sometimes 
applied,  but  five  years  ago  almost  or  quite  universally 
wasted. 

With  regard  to  mode  of  living,  tables,  chairs,  and  bed- 
steads and  cooking  ap  pa^itus  have  generally  been  pur- 
chased of  the  whites  or  manufactured  in  imitation  of 
them;  and  they  are  used  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  in 
almost  every  family.  The  habit  of  taking  regular  meals 
is  gaining  ground,  and  the  provision  luxurious.  In  the 
care  of  the  sick,  they  are  more  attentive  and  judicious, 
and  rely  less  on  notions  and  quackery;  they  employ 
skilful  physicians,  and  use  the  medicine  with  less  preju- 
dice, and  a  great  deal  mvore  confidence. 

Other  evidences  of  improvement  we  have  in  the  in- 
crease of  industry,  and  a  consequent  advance  in  dress, 
furniture,  jand  all  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of  civil- 
ized life.  The  fields  of  the  Indians  have  never  been 
kept  in  so  good  order,  and  managed  with  so  much  in- 
dustry, as  for  the  few  years  past.  At  public  meetings 
and  other  large  assemblies,  the  Indians  appear  comfort- 
ably and  decently,  and  some  of  them  richly  clad.  The 
population  is  increasing  gradually,  except  when  visited 
with  epidemics.  The  increase  of  general  information  is 
visible:  there  are  many  of  them,  who  keep  themselves 
well  informed  of  v/hat  is  going  on  in  the  country ;  sev- 
eral newspapers  have  been  taken  from  the  cities  of 
Washington,  D.  C,  Philadelphia,  New  York,  and 
other  cities  in  the  Union,  and  two  or  three  copies  of 
the  Genessee  Farmer.  Som^-  young  men  have  a  choice 
selection  of  books  and  libraries.  All  these  improvements 
are  advancing  at  a  rapid  rate,  except  when  they  are  dis- 
tracted with  cares  and  anxieties. 


13 

In  view  of  these  facts,  I  deem  it  unnecessary  to  say- 
any  thing  further,  as  to  the  question,  whether  or  not  the 
undertaking  is  feasible  to  bring  the  Senecas  up  to  the 
standard  which  shall  entitle  them  to  be  called  civilized 
■         and  christianized. 

The  only  question  which  I  shall  now  consider,  in- 
cluded in  the  subject  I  am  treating,  is,  liow  can  this  un- 
dertaking be  carried  into  operation  most  advantageously 
for  securing  its  ultimate  object? 

Can  it  be  by  remaining  where  we  now  are  located,  or 
by  selling  our  lands  and  removing  to  the  afore-mentioned 
**  terra  incognita  ?"  The  right  and  possession  of  our 
lands  is  undisputed — so  with  us  it  is  a  question  appeal- 
ing directly  to  our  interest;  and  how  stands  the  matter 
in  relation  to  that  ?  Our  lands  are  as  fertile  and  as  well 
situated  for  agricultural  pursuits  as  any  we  shall  get  by  a 
removal.  The  graves  of  our  fathers  and  mothers  and 
kin  are  here,  and  about  them  still  cling  our  affections 
and  memories.  Here  is  the  theatre  on  which  our  tribe 
has  thus  far  acted  its  part  in  the  drama  of  its  existence, 
and  about  it  are  wreathed  the  associations  which  ever 
bind  the  human  affections  to  the  soil,  whereon  one's  na- 
tion, and  kindred,  and  self,  have  arisen  and  acted.  We 
are  here  situated  in  the  midst  of  facilities  for  physical, 
intellectual  and  moral  improvement;  we  are  in  the  midst 
of  the  enlightened ;  we  see  their  ways  and  their  works, 
and  can  thus  profit  by  their  example.  We  can  avail  our- 
selves of  their  implements,  and  wares  and  merchandise, 
and  once  having  learned  the  convenience  of  using  them, 
we  shall  be  led  to  deem  them  indispensable.  We  here  are 
more  in  the  way  of  instruction  from  teachers,  having 
greater  facilities  for  getting  up  and  sustaining  schools ; 
and  as  we,  in  the  progress  of  our  improvement,  may 
come  to  feel  the  want  and  the  usefulness  of  books  and 
2 


i 


1  ' 


1 1 


I 

'i 


14 

prints,  so  we  shall  be  able  readily  and  cheaply  to  get 
whatever  we  may  choose.  In  this  view  of  facts,  surely 
there  is  no  inducement  for  removing. 

But  let  us  look  at  the  other  side  of  the  question.  In 
the  first  place  the  white  man  wants  our  land ;  in  the  next 
place  it  is  said  that  the  offer  for  it  is  liberal ;  in  the  next 
place  that  we  shall  be  better  ofT  to  remove  from  the  vi- 
cinity of  the  whites,  and  settle  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
our  fellow  red  men,  where  the  woods  flock  with  game, 
and  the  streams  abound  with  fishes.  These  are  the  rea- 
sons offered  and  urged  in  favour  of  our  removal. 

Let  us  consider  each  of  these  reasons  a  little  in  de- 
tail. The  fact  that  the  whites  want  our  land  imposes 
no  obligation  on  us  to  sell  it;  nor  does  it  hold  forth  an 
inducement  to  do  so,  unless  it  leads  them  to  offer  a  price 
equal  to  its  value.  We  neither  know  nor  feel  any  debt 
of  gratitude  which  we  owe  to  them,  in  consequence  of 
their  "  loving  kindness  or  tender  mercies"  towards  us, 
that  should  cause  us  to  make  a  sacrifice  of  our  property 
or  our  interest,  to  their  wonted  avarice,  and  which,  like 
the  mother  of  the  horse  leach,  cries,  Give,  give,  and  is 
never  sated. 

And  is  the  offer  liberal  ?  Of  that  who  but  ourselves 
are  to  be  the  final  judges?  If  we  do  not  deem  one  or 
two  dollars  an  acre  liberal  for  the  land,  which  will  to 
the  white  man's  pocket  bring  fifteen  to  fifty,  I  don't 
know  that  we  can  be  held  heinously  criminal  for  our 
opinion.  It  is  well  known  that  those  v/ho  are  anxious 
to  purchase  our  Reservations,  calculate  safely  on  fifteen 
dollars  the  acre  for  the  poorest,  and  by  gradation  up  to 
fifty  and  more,  for  the  other  qualities.  By  what  mode 
of  calculation  or  rules  of  judgment,  is  one  or  two  dollars 
a  liberal  offer  to  us,  when  many  times  that  sum  would 
be  only  fair  to  the  avarice  of  the  land  speculator  ?   Since 


mma 


ffiitgitlTiiaiiiiiii-iiiiiaini 


15 


^  to  g-et 
surely 

pn.  In 
he  next 
le  next 

the  vi- 
lood  of 

game, 
he  rea- 

in  de- 
nposes 
rth  an 
I  price 
y  debt 
nee  of 
ds  us, 
)perty 
I,  like 
md  is 

selves 
ne  or 
ill  to 
don't 
'  our 
nous 
fteen 
ip  to 
lode 
liars 
>uld 
ince 


in  us  is  vested  a  perfect  title  to  the  land,  I  know  not  why 
we  may  not,  when  we  wish,  dispose  of  it  at  such  prices 
as  we  may  see  fit  to  agree  upon. 

"  But  the  land  company  have  the  right  of  purchase," 
it  is  said — granted ;  but  they  have  not  the  right,  nor, 
we  trust  in  God,  the  power  to  force  us  to  accept  of  their 
offers.  And  when  that  company  finds  that  a  whistle  or 
a  rattle,  or  one  dollar  or  two,  per  acre,  will  not  induce 
us  to  part  with  our  lands,  is  it  not  in  the  nature  of  things 
that  they  should  offer  better  and  more  attractive  terms  ? 
If  they  could  not  make  forty-nine  dollars  on  an  acre  of 
land,  I  know  no  reason  why  they  would  fail  of  trying  to 
make  forty-five,  or  thirty,  or  ten.  So  I  see  no  obstacle 
to  our  selling  when  and  at  such  reasonable  prices  as  we 
may  wish,  in  the  fact  that  the  land  company  have  the 
right  of  purchase :  nor  do  I  see  any  thing  extortionate  in 
us,  in  an  unwillingness  to  part  with  our  soil  on  the  terms 
offered, — nor  even  in  the  desire^  if  our  lands  are  sold, 
of  putting  into  our  own  pockets  a  due  portion  of  their 
value. 

But  the  point  of  chief  importance  is,  shall  we  be  bet- 
ter ofl?  If  our  object  was  to  return  to  the  manners  and 
pursuits  of  life  which  characterised  our  ancestors,  and 
we  could  be  put  in  a  sa/e,  unmolested  and  durable  pos- 
session of  a  wilderness  of  game,  whose  streams  abound 
in  fish,  we  might  be  better  off;  but  though  that  were  our 
object,  I  deny  that  we  could  possess  such  a  territory 
this  side  of  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  with  safety ^  free  of 
molestation^  and  in  perpetuity. 

*'  Westward  the  Star  of  Empire  takes  its  way,"  and 
whenever  that  Empire  is  held  by  the  white  man,  nothing 
is  safe  or  unmolested  or  enduring  against  his  avidity  for 
gain.  Population  is  with  rapid  strides  going  beyond 
the  Mississippi,  and  even  casting  its  eye  with  longing 


'  !i 


16 


HH 


gaze  for  the  woody  peaks  of  the  Rocky  Mountains — ^nay 
even  for  the  surf-beaten  shore  of  the  Western  Ocean.— 
And  in  process  of  time,  will  not  our  territory  there  be 
as  subject  to  the  wants  of  the  whites,  as  that  which  we 
now  occupy  is  ?  Shall  we  not  then  be  as  strongly  so- 
licited, and  by  the  same  arguments,  to  remove  still  far- 
ther west?  But  there  is  one  condition  of  a  removal 
which  must  certainly  render  it  hazardous  in  the  extreme 
to  us.  The  proximity  of  our  then  situation  to  that  of 
other  and  more  warlike  tribes,  will  expose  us  to  con- 
stant harassing  by  them ;  and  not  only  this,  but  the 
character  of  those  worse  than  Indians,  those  white  bor- 
derers who  infest,  yes  infest  the  western  border  of  the 
white  population,  will  annoy  us  more  fatally  than  even 
the  Indians  themselves.  Surrounded  thus  by  the  natives 
of  the  soil,  and  hunted  by  such  a  class  of  whites,  who 
neither  "  fear  God  nor  regard  man,'*  how  shall  we  be 
better  off  there  than  where  we  now  are  ? 

Having  said  thus  much  as  to  our  condition  after  a 
removal,  under  the  supposition  that  we  wish  to  return  to 
and  continue  in  the  habits  of  life  which  prevailed  when 
the  country  was  first  taken  possession  of  by  the  Euro- 
peans, I  proceed  now  to  say,  that  we  do  not  wish  so 
to  do,  and  to  repeat,  that  so  far  from  it,  we  desire  to  re- 
nounce those  habits  of  mind  and  body,  and  adopt  in 
their  stead  those  habits  and  feelings — those  modes  of 
living,  and  acting  and  thinking,  which  result  from  the 
cultivation  and  enlightening  of  the  moral  arul  intellectual 
faculties  of  man.  And  on  this  point,  I  need  not  insult 
your  common  sense  by  endeavouring  to  show  that  it  is 
stupid  folly  to  suppose  that  a  removal  from  our  present 
location  to  the  western  wilds  would  improve  our  condi- 
tion. What!  leave  a  fertile  and  somewhat  improved 
soil — a  home  in  the  midst  of  civilization  and  Christianity, 


17 


s — nay 
cean.— 
lere  be 
lich  we 
g\y  80- 
till  far- 
emoval 
xtreme 
that  of 

0  con- 
ut  the 
fc  bor- 
of  the 

1  even 
latives 
,  who 

[we  be 

ifter  a 
urn  to 
when 
Euro- 
sh  so 
to  re- 
pt  in 
es  of 
I  the 
ctual 
asult 

It  IS 

«ent 
»ndi- 
>ved 


where  the  very  breezes  are  redolent  of  improvement 
and  exaltation, — where,  by  induction  as  it  were,  we 
must  be  pervaded  by  the  spirit  of  enterprise,— where 
books,  and  preaching,  and  conversation,  and  business 
and  conduct,  whose  influence  we  need,  are  all  around 
us,  so  that  we  have  but  to  stretch  forth  our  hands,  and 
open  our  ears,  and  turn  our  eyes,  to  experience  in  full 
their  improving  and  enlightening  effects, — leave  these ! 
and  for  what  ?  and  echo  answers  for  what  ?  But  me- 
thinks  I  hear  the  echo  followed  by  the  anxious  guileful 
whisper  of  some  government  land  company  agent — for 
one  or  two  dollars  the  acre,  and  a  western  wilderness 
beyond  the  white  man's  reach,  where  an  Eden  lies  in 
all  its  freshness  of  beauty  for  you  to  possess  and  enjoy. 
But  ours,  I  reply,  is  sufficiently  an  Eden  now,  if  but  the 
emissaries  of  the  arch  fiend,  not  so  much  in  the  form  of 
a  serpent  as  of  man,  can  be  kept  from  its  borders. 

But  I  will  relieve  your  patience  by  closing  my  re- 
marks; it  were  perhaps  needless,  perhaps  useless,  for 
me  to  appear  before  you  with  these  remarks,  feebly  and 
hastily  prepared  as  they  were ;  but  as  I  intimated  on  the 
outset,  the  crisis  which  has  now  arrived  in  the  affairs  of 
our  people  furnish  the  apology  and  reason  for  my  so  do- 
ing. And  now  I  ask,  what  feature  of  our  condition  is 
there  which  should  induce  us  to  leave  our  present  loca- 
tion and  seek  another  in  the  western  wilds  ?  Does  jus- 
tice, does  humanity,  does  religion,  in  their  relations  to 
us  demand  it?  Does  the  interest  and  well  being  of  the 
whites  require  it?  The  plainest  dictates  of  common 
sense  and  common  honesty,  answer  No  I  I  ask  then, 
in  behalf  of  the  New  York  Indians  and  myself,  that  our 
white  brethren  will  not  urge  us  t^  do  that  which  justice 
or  humanity  not  only  do  not  require,  but  condemn.  I 
ask  then  to  let  us  live  on,  where  our  fathers  have  lived; 

a* 


Il' 


I:: 


18 

!« ."!l,??/  ""  *'■'"""''««»  which  our  location  afford, 
u.;  that  thus  we.  who  have  been  converted  heatC 
may  be  made  meet  for  that  inheritance  which  the  j^I"; 
hath  promised  to  give  his  Son,  our  Saviour;  so  thauhe 

irLToftr  tr''''''^'''^  **'~^  """  ^o""' '"«  high 


fn  affords 
heathen, 

»e  Father 
that  the 

^som  hke 
the  high 


APPENDIX. 


It  has  been  repeatedly  said,  that  "  if  the  Indians  had 
been  left  to  the  exercise  of  their  own  judgment,  they 
would  have  consented  to  have  sold  their  lands  in  this 
state;  but  the  interested  white  man  opposed  to  their  re- 
moval, have  influenced  them  to  reject  the  '  liberal  offer* 
of  the  government." 

This  allegation  is  without  foundation ;  the  Indians 
know  their  interest  very  well;  they  ask  no  questions 
whether  it  is  best  for  them  to  sell  out  and  remove ;  they 
know  that  the  moment  they  leave  these  premises,  then 
will  troubles  commence;  poverty,  oppression,  destruc- 
tion, and  perhaps  war  and  bloodshed  will  fall  upon  them 
in  the  western  wilderness. 

The  policy  of  the  general  government  is  well  under- 
stood by  them;  and  the  country  assigned  them  west, 
has  been  explored  again  and  again,  so  that  they  do  not 
lack  knowledge  in  these  respects.  With  all  the  light 
and  information  on  the  subject  which  is  necessary  to 
form  a  correct  judgment  upon  it,  they  have  a  hundred 
times  repeated  in  open  council  and  in  the  presence  of 
the  United  States  commissioner,  that  they  cannot  and 
will  not  sell  out  their  lands  and  remove  beyond  the  Mis- 
sissippi river.  These  are  the  honest  judgments  of  the 
Indians,  and  this  answer  will  the  commissioner  receive 
from  the  honest  chiefs. 

But  while  persuasion  and  lawful  inducements  have 
been  held  out  to  them,  and  they  fail  to  produce  the  de- 


ii 


I' 


20 

sired  effect,  the  •'  Ogden  Company,"  through  their 
agents,  lose  no  time  in  buying  over  the  chief  to  aid  in 
procuring  the  treaty.  Rewards  have  been  made  to  pro- 
mote it,  and  to  induce  our  nation  to  consent  to  it.  In 
the  statements  which  follow,  I  shall  confine  myself  prin- 
cipally to  facts,  that  the  public  may  be  able  to  judge  for 
themselves  as  to  the  correctness  of  the  above  remark. 

First,  the  contract  of  John  Snow,  a  chief;  it  was  made 
a  year  ago,  and  may  be  known  by  the  date.  This  is 
one  of  the  many  contracts  entered  into  by  the  parties ; 
we  have  them  in  our  hands. 

ARTICLE  OF  AGREEMENT 
Made  and  concluded  this  20th  day  of  July,  1837,  be- 
tween Heman  B.  Potter,  of  the  city  of  Buffalo,  of  the 
first  part,  and  John  Snow,  a  Seneca  Chief  of  the  Buf- 
falo Creek  Reservation,  in  the  county  of  Erie,  of  the 
second  part. 

Whereas,  in  conformity  with  the  declared  policy  of 
the  government  of  the  United  States,  the  proprietors 
of  the  pre-emptive  title  of  and  in  the  four  several  tracts 
of  land,  reserved  by  the  Seneca  tribe  of  Indian?,  within 
the  said  State  of  New  York,  are  desirous  to  induce  the 
above-mentioned  tribe  of  Indians  to  accept  for  their 
future  and  permanent  residence,  a  tract  of  country  in 
the  territory  west  of  the  river  Mississippi,  appropriated 
for  Indians  inhabiting  the  Atlantic  and  other  neighboring 
states ;  and  are  also  desirous,  by  fair  purchase,  to  ex- 
tinguish the  right  of  the  said  Indians  in  and  to  the  lands 
in  this  state,  so  reserved  by  them. 

And  whereas,  in  furtherance  of  these  objects,  and  in 
order  to  a  future  treaty  by  which  to  effect  the  same,  the 
said  proprietors  have  authorised  negotiations  to  be  open* 


their 
aid  in 
\to  pro- 
it.     In 
[^  prin- 
fge  for 
Irk. 

made 
[his  is 
Arties ; 


21 

ed  with  the  cliiefs  and  other  leading  men  of  the  said 
tribe  of  Indians,  and  certain  offers  to  be  made  to  them 
in  money  as  a  permanent  fund  for  the  nation,  and  a 
compensation  for  their  improvements;  and  have  also 
deemed  it  advisable  and  necessary  to  employ  the  aid,  co- 
operation and  services  of  certain  individuals  who  are 
able  to  influence  the  said  Indians  to  accept  of  the  offers 
so  to  be  made  to  them. 

And  whereas  the  said  Heman  B.  Potter,  the  party  ol 
the  first  part,  is  empowered  to  act  on  behalf  of  the  said 
proprietors,  and  to  contract  with  any  individuals  whose 
co-operation  and  agency  may  be  necessary  and  eflicient 
in  accomplishing  the  above-mentioned  object;  and  the 
said  John  Snow,  the  party  of  the  second  part,  has 
agreed  to  contribute  his  influence  and  services  in  the 
premises;  and  in  case  of  the  extinguishment  of  the 
same  Indian  title  to  the  said  reserved  lands  as  aforesaid, 
to  sell  to  the  said  proprietors  all  and  singular  his  im- 
provements of,  in  and  to  the  same. 

Now  therefore,  it  is  mutually  agreed  by  and  between 
the  parties  hereto,  as  follows : 

First,  The  party  of  the  second  part  undertakes  and 
agrees  to  use  his  best  exertions  and  endeavours  to  dis- 
pose and  induce  the  said  Indians  to  adopt  and  pursue 
the  advice  and  recommendations  of  the  government  of 
the  United  States,  in  respect  to  ^heir  removal  and  future 
location,  and  on  such  said  terms  as  the  party  of  the  first 
part,  and  his  associates,  in  the  name  of  the  said  proprie- 
tors, shall  propose  to  sell  and  release,  by  treaty,  their 
said  reserved  lands ;  and  on  all  occasions  to  co-operate 
with  and  aid  the  said  party  of  the  first  part,  and  his  as- 
sociates, as  he  may  be  from  time  to  time  advised,  in  talks 
and  negotiations  with  the  chiefs  and  other  influential  mr;n 
of  the  said  tribe ;   and  in  the  active  application  of  his 


hi 

ii 

■i 


22 

""^and  „,e,aid  propr S/,^;^  '•"-"»  'i-e  said 
Second.   Thn  «««      i        *''^'^^^"  lands. 

-W.  and  hereby  'Ztl^Z  1 '""  .7°""  P"'  "-" 
f »d  singular,  i,i,   b„i,j. ;"'   '°    ''."  «a,d  proprietors,  all 

'»"*  »o  .0  be  released    f.re,t  '"'7™'"^'"'  <>"   .he 

compennation  therefor  in  the  7'  '       "^'"''  '"  "eeept 

'."""'i;  said  building,  and  ilr""  ''""'"'"''"  »>«"- 

fme  not  to  be  leased,  or  n  a'Tv  r"™"""  '"  "'"  "'«»'' 

"aid  party  of  the  second  plrt     ^         ""  '"^P"'^''  "^  by 

;n^  f i=-r;:rs:ri:td^f  r  -°p-'- 

[""y  bestowed  in  the  premises   Tl   r"^"  «"""' ftith- 
J«ase  of  all  and  singular^  ^  .  h  1  r'  ""  '"''  ""^  ^e- 
aents  upon  any  of  ,he   2,?  r      ''''"^'  ""''  ""P'ove- 
or  otherwise  dlposing '^/hf 7^^'"'  -""out  leasing 
'"Pulated,  the  said  He„,a„  R    p  "''  "'  ''"«'"  abovf 
ha.  of  his  associates  a^ee"  L ?""'  ""  "'»  ?»«.  and 
'o  the  said  John  Snow  The  II T'  °'  "'"''^  '"  ^e  paid, 
^'thin  three  months  afe  no^ie"/  T,  """"^"l  """ars 
'lie  Senate  of  the  United  sL!    ^  "'^  ratification,  by 
'!-  -1  tribe  and  t?wrr:^°f'r'''.r^''«'-n 
1e.  or  their  trustees,  by  Xh  .1      '""'  P^«-«»'Ptive 
'he  said  Indians  shall  be  effect  >.       ."^'"  ^"''  '"'«  of 
S^-hed  in  and  to  the  said  r~^  't"^"  =""•  «''»- 
ever,  to  the  followi„„  qualS  "f' '  """-ject,  how- 

*at  in  case  the  said  treaty  hi  "  '"''  ""*«'anding,_ 
'0  -dividual  Indians  f  'the  '  CPv"  '"  "'^  P^^""-' 
"en's.then  and  i„  that  case  tT.      1"'^'  ""''  '™P™ve. 


23 


iterviews, 

tile  said 

aliment  of 

>art  hath 
fJtors,  all 
I  on  the 
0  accept 
er  men- 
le  mean 
d  of  by 

>eration 
S  faith- 
and  re- 
iprove- 
leasing 

above 
%  and 

paid, 
hilars, 
n,  by 
ween 
ptive 
le  of 
xtin- 
low- 

?»— 

nent 

3ve- 

ond 

the 

um 

by 


j 


and  under  the  provisions  of  such  treaty,  for  his  said 
buildings  and  improvements,  and  the  balance  of  the  said 
two  thousand  dollars  which  shall  remain,  after  deduct- 
ing therefrom  such  compensation  as  aforesaid,  and  that 
only  to  be  paid  by  the  said  party  of  the  first  part,  as 
above  specified,  within  the  time  above-mentioned,  or  as 
soon  tiiereafter  as  the  said  balance  can  be  ascertained ; 
and  in  case  said  party  of  the  second  part  shall  be  entitled 
by  and  under  tlie  provision  of  said  treaty,  to  the  sum  of 
two  thousand  dollars  and  upwards,  he  shall  receive  the 
same  as  may  be  therein  provided,  and  the  said  party  of 
the  first  part  shall  be  discharged  from  paying  any  part 
of  the  said  two  thousand  dollars. 

And  the  said  John  Snow  shall  also  be  entitled,  at  a 
nominal  rent,  to  a  lease  from  the  owners  of  the  pre-emp- 
tive title,  or  their  trustees,  of  and  for  the  lot  of  land  ac- 
tually improved  and  occupied  by  him,  called  the  Whip- 
ple Farm,  near  the  old  council-house,  on  the  Buffalo 
Reservation,  for  and  during  his  own  natural  life,  deter- 
minable when  and  as  soon  as  he  shall  cease  to  live  on 
and  occupy  the  same ;  said  lease  to  be  executed  by  the 
lessors  as  soon  after  said  treaty  as  said  lands  shall  have 
been  surveyed  and  allotted,  said  lease  having  reference 
to  said  survey. 

This  agreement  on  the  part  of  said  party  of  the  first 
part,  being  expressly  dependant  upon  a  treaty  to  be 
made  and  ratified  upon  terms,  conditions,  and  stipula- 
tions to  be  proposed  and  ofi'ered  by  said  party  of  the  first 

part  and  his  associates. 

H.  B.  POTTER,  [l.  s.] 
his 

JOHN  X  SNOW,  [l.  s.] 
mark. 


WITNESS— 


his 


GEORGE  >^JIMESON. 

mark. 

TRUE    COPY. 


0 


m.:i 


24 

In  addition  to  the  above  stipulation,  money  and  brandy 
have  been  used  for  the  same  purpose ;  and  finally,  in- 
timidation and  discouragement  are  not  wanting, — for 
instance,  they  will  tell  us,  *'  Here  my  friend,  you  have 
got  to  go,  there  is  no  earthly  doubt — the  policy  of  the 
government  is  fixed,  and  your  best  course  is  to  get  as 
much  money  as  you  can  from  the  pre-emption  company, 
make  you  a  contract,"  &c.  The  object  of  the  present 
council  is  to  give  an  opportunity  for  the  chiefs  to  assent 
to  the  amendments  of  the  last  winter's  treaty,  or  to  re- 
fuse them.  The  resolution  of  the  Senate,  is  in  the  fol- 
lowing words,  to  wit,— 

Provided  always^  and  be  it  further  resolved^  That 
this  treaty  shall  have  no  force  or  effect  whatever,  as  it 
relates  to  any  of  the  said  tribes,  nations  or  bands  of  New 
York  Indians,  nor  shall  it  be  understood  that  the  Senate 
have  assented  to  any  of  the  contracts  connected  with  it, 
until  the  same,  with  the  amendments  herein  proposed, 
is  submitted  and  fully  and  fairly  explained,  by  a  com- 
missioner of  the  United  States,  to  each  of  said  tribes  or 
bands,  separately  assembled  in  council,  and  they  have 
given  their  free  and  voluntary  assent  thereto;  and  if  one 
or  more  of  said  tribes  or  bands  when  consulted  as  afore- 
said, shall  freely  assent  to  said  treaty  as  amended,  and 
to  their  contract  connected  therewith,  it  shall  be  binding 
and  obligatory  upon  those  so  assenting,  although  other, 
or  others,  of  said  bands  or  tribes  may  not  give  their  con- 
sent, and  thereby  cease  to  be  parties  thereto :  Provided 
further^  That  if  any  portion  or  part  of  said  Indians  do 
not  emigrate,  the  President  shall  retain  a  proper  portion 
of  said  sum  of  four  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  shall 
deduct  from  the  quantity  of  land  allowed  west  of  the 
Mississippi,  such  number  of  acres  as  will  leave  to  each 
emigrant  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres  only. 

o 


<>  e  '*;  .^\j  ":  ,- 


^y  and  brandy 
nd  finally,  in- 
wanting, — for 
nd,  you  have 
policy  of  the 
B  is  to  get  as 
ion  company, 
f  the  present 
iefs  to  assent 
aty,  or  to  re- 
is  in  the  fol- 

^olved.  That 
atever,  as  it 
mds  of  New 
t  the  Senate 
5ted  with  it, 
»  proposed, 
by  a  com- 
id  tribes  or 
they  have 
and  if  one 
d  as  afore- 
Bnded,  and 
be  binding 
iJgh  other, 
their  con- 
Provided 
ndians  do 
er  portion 
and  shall 
'St  of  the 
e  to  each 


